Darin Oswald/Idaho Statesman/MCT via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — A former White House executive chef to Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush has been reported missing in New Mexico’s Taos Ski Valley after a planned hiking trip to the area last Saturday.
Walter Scheib, 61, was reported missing by his girlfriend when he did not return home from a hiking trip last Saturday.
Authorities discovered his vehicle on Tuesday, and have been combing 20 to 30 square miles of mountainous area for Schieb since Wednesday, according to Bob Rodgers, the search and resource officer leading the search for the New Mexico Department of Public Safety.
“The terrain is very tough, very rough,” Rodgers said. “We still have snow on the mountains.”
Authorities are using a combination of ground teams, search and rescue dogs and at least one helicopter in the search, Rodgers said.
Scheib, who authored a White House cookbook and appeared on the cooking show Iron Chef America, was hired by Hillary Clinton to work in the White House kitchen in 1994 after serving her a pecan-crusted rack of Australian lamb, he once said in an interview with ABC News’ Good Morning America.
He went on to serve as the president’s top chef for 11 years, preparing daily meals and state dinners alike for Clinton and Bush.
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